All eyes may have been on Caitlin Clark in Game 1 of the WNBA playoffs, but guess what? You were watching the wrong show. Marina Mabrey was over here stealing the spotlight, and she did it in style. It’s like showing up to a party dressed as the waiter and then walking out with the MVP trophy. Connecticut Sun fans, you might want to give this girl a standing ovation – or at least another pair of hot hands for her clutch shooting.
In a 93-69 smackdown over the Indiana Fever, Mabrey took over, dropping 27 points – the most ever by a reserve in a WNBA playoff game. Yeah, let that sink in. A bench player waltzed in and said, “I’ll take that record, thank you very much!” She was 5-for-12 from beyond the arc, practically setting up camp at the three-point line and turning Indiana’s defense into nothing more than confused bystanders.
This isn’t just any player we’re talking about, though. Marina Mabrey joined the Sun in July after a midseason trade from the Chicago Sky. Just imagine that. She shows up halfway through the season and decides, “Yeah, I’ll just casually change the trajectory of the playoffs.” Bold, right?
Now, Brendan Glasheen, Sun’s play-by-play announcer and resident Mabrey hype-man, couldn’t stop singing her praises on the latest On Her Mark podcast. According to him, Mabrey’s shot-making coming off screens is pure art. We’re talking Van Gogh with a basketball. You know how some players use screens to get a little space? Mabrey’s out here using them to create entire zip codes for her jumpers. She’s not just a shooter either – she’s a certified ball-handler with some sneaky facilitator skills.
Her 3.4 assists per game this season? Second only to Connecticut’s MVP-in-everything-except-the-trophy Alyssa Thomas. And that’s just a footnote in her book of offensive wizardry. It’s like she’s the chef whipping up gourmet passes while everyone else is still figuring out the microwave settings.
Connecticut has always been about that defense-first life. But let’s be real, their offensive punch has been… well, let’s just call it “polite.” Enter Mabrey, the Sun’s newest offensive adrenaline shot. She’s that dynamite shooter they’ve needed to keep up with their suffocating defense. Just ask DeWanna Bonner, DiJonai Carrington, and Ty Harris how happy they are to have Mabrey spreading the floor like butter on toast.
According to Glasheen, it’s like the Sun pulled a Boston Celtics move by trading for her. Think Jrue Holiday or Kristaps Porzingis but with way better taste in shoes. They threw in their chips to win now, and Mabrey might just be their ace in the hole.
Can she carry the Sun all the way to a WNBA championship? Who knows. But if Game 1 is any indicator, this isn’t the last time you’ll hear “Marina Mabrey” and “playoff record” in the same sentence. Keep your eyes peeled, folks. She’s the difference-maker the Sun didn’t know they needed – but now, they sure won’t want to live without her.
So while everyone keeps talking about Caitlin Clark (again), just remember who’s actually pushing Connecticut closer to the title. Marina Mabrey, the unsung X-factor, might just have the last laugh.